3D printed staged filtration media packs

ABSTRACT

A filter medium includes a plurality of layers each including an undulating strip of solidified material.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to filters and breathers used to removecontaminants various fluids such as hydraulic fluid, air filtration,oil, and fuel, etc. used to power the mechanisms and engines of earthmoving, construction and mining equipment and the like (e.g. automotive,agriculture, HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning),locomotive, marine, exhaust treatment or any other industry wherefilters and breathers are useful). Specifically, the present disclosurerelates to filters that are manufactured using 3D printing technology,allowing more complex geometry to be used in the filter.

BACKGROUND

Earth moving, construction and mining equipment and the like often usefilters and/or breathers used to remove contaminants various fluids suchas hydraulic fluid, oil, and fuel, etc. used to power the mechanisms andengines of the equipment. Over time, contaminants collect in the fluidthat may be detrimental to the components of the various mechanisms(e.g. hydraulic cylinders) and the engines, necessitating repair. Thegoal of the filters and/or breathers to remove the contaminants in thevarious fluids to prolong the useful life of these components. Anyindustry using filters and/or breathers may also need to removecontaminants from hydraulic fluid, air, oil, and fuel, etc. Examples ofthese other industries, include but are not limited to, automotive,agriculture, HVAC, locomotive, marine, exhaust treatment, etc.

The features and geometry employed by such filters is limited by themanufacturing techniques available to make the filters and theirassociated filter media. The technologies typically used include foldingporous fabric or other materials that remove the contaminants. Typicaladditive manufacture is structured around creating parts which are solidas opposed to being porous. As a result, generating a filtration mediaof a useable grade that can be integrated into printed parts or used ina media pack is not within the standard capability of current additivetechnologies such as FDM (fused deposition modeling), FFF (fusedfilament fabrication), SLA (stereolithography), etc.

For example, U.S. Pat. Application Publication No. 2016/0287048 A1 toThiyagarajan et al. discloses a filter for a dishwasher appliance thatincludes a filter medium, a body extending along an axial direction ofthe filter, and a cap positioned at a first end of the body along theaxial direction of the filter. The filter medium is configured to filterdebris and other particles from wash fluid from the wash chamber of thedishwasher appliance and is attached to or formed integrally with thebody of the filter. Additionally, the cap is configured to allow a flowof wash liquid from the wash chamber of the dishwasher appliance to thefilter medium and may be formed integrally with the body of the filterusing an additive manufacturing process. FIGS. 15 and 16 and paragraph59 of Thiyagarajan et al. indicate that the filter openings aremacroscopic (0.08 of an inch). This is not suitable to remove some ofthe contaminants encountered by filters and/or breathers used in earthmoving, construction and mining industries and the like (see above for amore expansive list of industries that use filters and/or breathers).

Similarly, U.S. Pat. Application Publication No. 2016/0287605 A1 toMiller et al. discloses a dishwasher appliance that includes a sumpassembly with a unitary filter for filtering wash fluid supplied to awash chamber of the dishwasher appliance. The unitary filter defines acentral axis. The unitary filter also has a filter medium with an innersurface that defines an interior chamber of the filter medium. Across-sectional area of the interior chamber in a plane that isperpendicular to the central axis changes along a length of the centralaxis. A related method for forming a unitary filter for a dishwasherappliance is also provided. In paragraph 33 of Miller et al., the poresize of the filter medium is said to range from 0.003 of an inch to0.025 of an inch. However, the exact method of creating such a smallpore size is not described in enabling detail.

SUMMARY

A filter medium according to an embodiment of the present disclosurecomprises a plurality of layers of solidified material including a firstlayer with a first undulating strip of solidified material extending ina first predetermined direction, and a second layer with a secondundulating strip of solidified material extending in a secondpredetermined direction. The first layer is in contact with the secondlayer and the first predetermined direction is not parallel with thesecond predetermined direction, forming a plurality of porestherebetween.

A filter medium according to another embodiment of the presentdisclosure comprises a plurality of layers each including an undulatingstrip of solidified material.

A filter according to an embodiment of the present disclosure comprisesa body including an outer wall defining a hollow interior, an inlet influid communication with the hollow interior, an outlet in fluidcommunication with the hollow interior, and a first filter mediumdisposed in the hollow interior comprising a plurality of layers. Eachlayer includes an undulating strip of solidified material, forming aplurality of pores between each of the plurality of layers.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute apart of this specification, illustrate several embodiments of thedisclosure and together with the description, serve to explain theprinciples of the disclosure. In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a filter with a filter mediummanufactured using 3D printing or other additive manufacturingtechnology according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure.The top portion of the filter is removed to show the inner workings ofthe filter. More specifically, the filter is shown being as it is beingbuilt via an additive manufacturing process.

FIG. 2 is a is a perspective view of a filter with filter mediamanufactured using 3D printing or other additive manufacturingtechnology according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure,similar to that of FIG. 1 except that a plurality of filter media areprovided having different sized pores.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged perspective view of the filter medium of FIG. 1,illustrating that the filter medium is formed by forming layers ofundulating strips of material that undulate in an alternating directionfrom one layer (X direction) to the adjacent layer (Y direction) alongthe Z direction.

FIG. 4 is a rear oriented perspective view of the filter of FIG. 2.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of a filter medium according to anotherembodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 6 is a filter assembly according to a third embodiment of thepresent disclosure.

FIG. 7 is a perspective sectional view of the filter assembly of FIG. 6,showing a filtration medium according to yet another embodiment of thepresent disclosure, depicting the fluid flow through the filter.

FIG. 8 shows the filter assembly of FIG. 7 in a dry state as it is beingbuilt using an additive manufacturing process, more clearly showing theporosity of the filter medium.

FIG. 9 shows a front sectional view of the filter assembly of FIG. 8.

FIG. 10 is enlarged detail view of a portion of the filter assembly ofFIG. 8, illustrating that the housing and the filter medium may both bemade using additive manufacturing.

FIG. 11 is a perspective sectional view of the filter medium of FIG. 8,showing more clearly that the filter medium has a generally cylindricalannular configuration.

FIG. 12 is a front view of the filter medium of FIG. 11.

FIG. 13 is a top sectional view of the filter assembly of FIG. 8.

FIG. 14 is a top sectional view of the filter assembly of FIG. 8

FIG. 15 is a schematic depicting a method and representing a system forgenerating a three-dimensional model of the filter and/or filter mediumaccording to any embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 16 is a flowchart illustrating a method of creating a filter and/ora filter medium according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Reference will now be made in detail to embodiments of the disclosure,examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Whereverpossible, the same reference numbers will be used throughout thedrawings to refer to the same or like parts. In some cases, a referencenumber will be indicated in this specification and the drawings willshow the reference number followed by a letter for example, 100a, 100bor by a prime for example, 100′, 100″ etc. It is to be understood thatthe use of letters or primes immediately after a reference numberindicates that these features are similarly shaped and have similarfunction as is often the case when geometry is mirrored about a plane ofsymmetry. For ease of explanation in this specification, letters andprimes will often not be included herein but may be shown in thedrawings to indicate duplications of features, having similar oridentical function or geometry, discussed within this writtenspecification.

Various embodiments of a filter and/or filter medium will be discussedherein that utilize existing additive manufacturing technologies toimplement a method to produce a repeatable process that generates porousfiltration media of a useable efficiency grade. Examples of the processinclude FFF, FDM, SLA, etc., 3D printing hardware, and specific controlof the movement patterns of the printing head so that as the material isadded to the part, small gaps are created to build a porous structure.This method utilize an open source software that generates thefiltration structure based on the inputs given to it by the user. Themethod may vary the speed and path of the print head, the flow rate ofthe plastic being deposited, cooling methods, etc. The structure that islaid down may droop or otherwise deform so that small sized pores arecreated.

For example, the material may drip from one layer to the next layer,creating a seal with the next layer. Thus creating two (or more) poresand finer porosity in the media. Deformation (e.g. dripping, drooping,etc.) may occur from the heat retained from the hot nozzle in the newestcreated layer and gravity. As a result, the previous laid layer may beattached to the new layer. The dripping layer that is perpendicular/notparallel to two parallel layers separated by a suitable distance maydeform until it contacts the adjacent layer, creating two (or more)smaller pores on each side. In effect, this may create finer pore sizesfor finer filtration. The desirable deformation may include adjustingthe temperature control, control of layer height, extrusion width,infill pattern, etc.

A single layer of filtration media's debris holding capacity istypically limited by the number of flow passages through the media. Asfluid passes through the media, debris larger than the passages will notbe able to flow through the media and ultimately block the flow passageor become lodged in the media. To increase the capacity of a filter,media can also be layered and/or staggered so that larger debris can bestopped at a different depth than smaller debris. This results in anincrease in media debris holding capacity. The prototypical media has ahomogenous pore structure. This limits the capacity of the media becausemost of the debris stopped by the filter will happen near the surfacewhich the contaminated fluid initially flows through.

In various embodiments of the filter media disclosed herein, a gradientwithin a stage of media and/or several staged media packs fabricatedthrough additive manufacturing techniques may be provided. The mediapack can consist of discrete media packs developed and synthesized fromunique combinations of input settings in the additive manufacturingprocess. These settings selectively control the geometry of each stagein the media pack. Fabricating discrete and unique media packs in stagesallows for the entire media pack to act as one continuous filteringelement despite allowing for multiple stages of filtration as would bedone using a filter in filter configuration or having multiple filtersin series in a system. Unlike a filter in conventional filter design,adding additional stages does not necessarily result in a significantincrease in part complexity and cost.

As a result, the contaminated flow will pass through each stageundergoing a different form of filtration to achieve a certainefficiency level. Ins some embodiments, the height of a layer is heldconstant with respect to that layer and is defined at a fixed distancefrom the layer that was just added to the part (printing at differentlayer heights at different heights of a printed part is something thatis done to reduce print time.)

In some embodiments, a method varies the height of the layer as it isprinted to create a single layer which is thicker in one area andthinner in another. The change in layer height with respect to depth inthe media pack may result in a taper which creates a smaller pore sizeas the flow progresses downstream. This may increase the efficiency withrespect to depth and prevents larger particles from passing further thanan appropriate depth specific to that particle size. This may allow forbetter utilization of the volume occupied by the media pack and mayincrease the debris holding capacity. The tapers can also be nested, tofurther increase utilization of the media pack volume. The tapers whichare nested, can either be the same dimensions so that it can function asa filter, or the tapers can have progressively smaller specificationsthat can increase the efficiency with respect to the stage within themedia pack.

Filters and/or filter media discussed herein may be used to removecontaminants in any type of fluid, including hydraulic fluid, oil, fuel,etc. and may be used in any industry including earth moving,construction and mining, etc. As used herein, the term “filter” is to beinterpreted to include “breathers” or any device used to removecontaminants from fluids as described anywhere herein. Also, anysuitable industry as previously described herein that uses filtersand/or breathers may use any of the embodiments discussed herein.

Focusing on FIGS. 1 thru 4, a filter according to an embodiment of thepresent disclosure will be described. It should be noted that the topportion of the filter in FIGS. 1 thru 4 has been removed to show theinner workings of the filter. Even though the top portion is removed, itis to be understood that that the filter would include such a topportion and would form an enclosure in practice. Other components of thefilter not specifically shown but is understood to be present includeend caps, a center tube, a top plate, etc. The center tube may beomitted in some embodiments because the filter may have more structuralintegrity since the filter may be manufactured with the filter media.

The filter 100 may comprise a body 102 including an outer wall 104defining a hollow interior 106. As shown, the outer wall 104 has arectangular shape (or other polygonal shape). This may not be the casein other embodiments. For example, see FIG. 6. Other configurations suchas cylindrical are possible for the outer wall 104. Referring again toFIGS. 1 thru 4, an inlet 108 is in fluid communication with the hollowinterior 106. Also, an outlet 110 is in fluid communication with thehollow interior 106. A first filter medium 112 is disposed in the hollowinterior 106 comprising a plurality of layers 114, 114′, etc. As bestseen in FIG. 3, each layer 114, 114′, etc. includes an undulating strip116 of solidified material, forming a plurality of pores 117, 117′, etc.between each of the plurality of layers 114, 114′.

Looking at FIGS. 1, 2 and 4, the hollow interior 106 includes arectangular cubic chamber 118 in fluid communication with the inlet 108and the outlet 110. The first filter medium 112 is disposed in therectangular cubic chamber 118 between the inlet 108 and the outlet 110.Consequently, fluid that is to be filtered enters through the inlet 108,passes through the first filter medium 112, and out the outlet 110. Itshould be noted that the inlet 108 and outlet 110 can be switched asillustrated by the contrasting fluid flow arrows 120 in FIG. 1 versusthe fluid flow arrows 120′ in FIG. 2. The hollow interior 106 may haveother shapes other than rectangular cubic such as shown in FIG. 7.

Referring to FIG. 2, the body 102 may include a bottom wall 122 and asidewall 124. The inlet 108 may extend through the bottom wall 122 andthe outlet 110 may extend through the sidewall 124. In FIGS. 1, 2 and 4,the body 102 defines a plurality of parallel support ribs 126 disposedin the outlet 110 or inlet 108 that extends through the sidewall 124.The function of these support ribs 126 is to support the structure ofthe body 102 as it is being built via an additive manufacturing process,while being able to allow fluid flow through the orifice (e.g. inlet 108or outlet 110) in the sidewall 124 with little resistance. That is tosay, the ribs 126 are oriented in the desired flow direction 120, 120′.

Similarly, the body 102 further defines a plurality of auxiliary voids128 that are not in fluid communication with the rectangular cubicchamber 118. The body 102 includes support structure 130 disposed in theplurality of auxiliary voids 128. The purpose of the auxiliary voids 128is to speed up the manufacturing process when being built via anadditive manufacturing process while the support structure 130, whichmay take the form of a lattice of interconnecting ribs, provides forstructural rigidity and strength.

The body 102 may be seamless and the first filter medium 112 may be anintegral part of the body 102 or may be a separate component from thebody 102, being inserted later into the body 102. As best seen in FIG.5, the first filter medium 112 may define a plurality of pores 117 thatdefine a minimum dimension 134 that is between 50 μm to 200 μm. Inparticular embodiments, the minimum dimension 134 of the plurality ofpores 117 may range from 70 μm to 170 μm. These various configurations,spatial relationships, and dimensions may be varied as needed or desiredto be different than what has been specifically shown and described inother embodiments. For example, the pore size may be as big as desiredor may be as small as desired (e.g. 4 μmicrons, in FIG. 5 h_a>>h_b).

Looking at FIGS. 2 and 4, the filter 100 may further comprise a secondfilter medium 132 disposed immediately adjacent the first filter medium112 and the outlet 110. That is to say, the fluid to be filtered flowsthrough the inlet 108, through the first filter medium 112, then throughthe second filter medium 132, and then out through the outlet 110. Insome embodiments, as best understood with reference to FIG. 5, the firstfilter medium 112 defines a plurality of pores 117, 117′ having a firstminimum dimension 134 and the second filter medium 132 defines aplurality of pores 117, 117′ having a second minimum dimension 134′. Thefirst minimum dimension 134 may be greater than the second minimumdimension 134′.

As a result, a plurality of filtering stages may be provided, so thatlarger sized contaminants are filtered out in the first stage by thefirst filter medium 112, finer contaminants are filtered out in thesecond stage by the second filter medium 132, etc. As many filteringstates as needed or desired may be provided in various embodiments (upto and including the n^(th) stage). In other embodiments, the firstfilter medium 112 may be configured to remove water, the second filtermedium 134 may be configured to remove debris, etc. In some embodiments,the first filter medium 112 and the second filter medium 132 areseparate components that may be inserted into the body 102. In such acase, the body 102 of the filter 100 is separate from the first filtermedium 112 and the second filter medium 132. In other embodiments, thefirst filter medium 112 and the second filter medium 132 are integralwith the body 102 and each other, being built up at the same time as thebody 102 via an additive manufacturing process.

Focusing now on FIGS. 6 thru 14, a filter 200 according to anotherembodiment of the present disclosure (e.g. a canister style filter) willbe described. The filter 200 may comprise a housing 202 including anouter wall 204 and an inner wall 206. The outer wall 204 and the innerwall 206 define the same longitudinal axis 208. The inner wall 206 mayhave a cylindrical configuration and may define a radial direction 210that passes through the longitudinal axis 208 and that is perpendicularthereto, and a circumferential direction 212 that is tangential to theradial direction 210 and perpendicular to the longitudinal axis 208. Theinner wall 206 is spaced radially away from the outer wall 204, thehousing 202 further defining a first end 214 and a second end 216disposed along the longitudinal axis 208 and a hollow interior 218.These various configurations and spatial relationships may differ inother embodiments.

As best seen in FIGS. 7 thru 10, an inlet 220 is in fluid communicationwith the hollow interior 218 and an outlet 222 is in fluid communicationwith the hollow interior 218. A filter medium 224 is disposed in thehollow interior 218 comprising a plurality of layers 226, 226′, etc.Each layer 226 may include an undulating strip 228, 228′, etc. ofsolidified material. The filter medium 224 includes an annular shapedefining an outer annular region 230 and an inner annular region 232.

The hollow interior 218 includes an outer annular chamber 234 that is influid communication with the inlet 220 and the outer annular region 230of the filter medium 224 and a central cylindrical void 237 concentricabout the longitudinal axis 208 that is in fluid communication with theoutlet 222 and the inner annular region 232 of the filter medium 224.This establishes the flow of the fluid to be filtered shown by arrows236 in FIGS. 6 and 7. This direction of flow may be reversed in otherembodiments.

The inner wall 206 may define the outlet 222 and may include internalthreads 238 or other types of mating interfaces. The housing 202 definesa top surface 240 and the inlet 220 is a first cylindrical hole 242extending from the top surface 240 to outer annular chamber 234 and theoutlet 222 extends from the top surface 240 to the central cylindricalvoid 237. As shown in FIGS. 7 thru 9, a plurality of identicallyconfigured inlets 220 may be provided, arranged in a circular arrayabout the longitudinal axis 208. Similarly, a plurality of outlets maybe provided in various embodiments. The number and placement of theinlets and outlets may be varied as needed or desired in variousembodiments.

In some embodiments, the housing 202 is seamless and the filter medium224 is integral with the housing 202. For example, the filter medium 224may be built at the same time as the housing 202 via an additivemanufacturing process. In other embodiments, the filter medium 224 maybe a separate component inserted into the housing. A plurality ofdifferent filter media may be provided in a concentric manner asdescribed earlier herein to provide multi-staged filtering if desired.The filter medium 224 defines a plurality of pores 117 (not clearlyshown in FIGS. 7 thru 14 but is to be understood to have the samestructure shown in FIG. 3 or 5) that define a minimum dimension 134 thatis less than 200 μm. As previously mentioned herein, the size of thepores may be any suitable size.

Focusing on FIGS. 8 thru 12, the filter medium 224 comprises a capportion and a bottom portion. The cap portion 246 including a firstplurality of layers 250, 250′ etc. of solidified material including afirst layer 250 with a first undulating strip 252 of solidified materialextending in the first predetermined direction 254 and a second layer250′ with a second undulating strip 252′ of solidified materialextending in a second predetermined direction 256. The first layer 250is in contact with the second layer 250′ and the first predetermineddirection 254 is not parallel with the second predetermined direction256.

Similarly, the bottom portion 248 includes a second plurality of layers258, 258′ of solidified material including a third layer 258 with athird undulating strip 260 of solidified material extending in the thirdpredetermined direction 262 and a fourth layer 258′ with a fourthundulating strip 260′ of solidified material extending in a fourthpredetermined direction 264. The third layer 258 is in contact with thefourth layer 258′ and the third predetermined direction 262 is notparallel with the fourth predetermined direction 264.

As best seen in FIG. 10, the undulations of the cap portion 246 and theundulations of the bottom portion 248 are out of phase with each other.The cap portion 246 and the bottom portion 248 may represent the first3-5 layers of a print. The number of solid layers at the bottom and atthe top are controlled by the print settings. They may provideadditional structural support to the print and seal off the “infill”from the layers of exposed plastic. In some embodiments, multiple mediamay be stacked vertically to create “out of phase” undulations that canmanipulate and change the flow paths of the fluids running through eachsection of the out of phase media packs. For example, more restrictivechannels may be provided at the top or bottom portions while the middleportion may have more open channels depending on the preferences for aparticular filtration application.

FIG. 14 shows that the filter 200 may include auxiliary voids 266 withsupport structure 268 disposed therein to speed up the manufacturingprocess when using an additive manufacturing process while maintainingthe structural integrity of the filter 200.

A filter 300 according to yet another embodiment of the presentdisclosure may be generally described as follows with reference to FIGS.1 thru 14. The filter 300 may comprise a housing 302 and a filter medium304 including a plurality of layers 306, 306′, etc. of solidifiedmaterial. At least one of the plurality of layers 306, 306′ ofsolidified material includes an undulating strip 308 of solidifiedmaterial extending in a first predetermined direction 310. Looking atFIG. 3, the undulating strip 308 of material may be arranged in atrapezoidal pattern. That is to say, two legs 312 of the strip 308 maybe angled relative to each other (or oblique relative to each other) toform a pore 314 with a reduced size as the fluid passes through the pore314. In FIG. 3, this reduction in size occurs in the X-Y plane. In FIG.5, this reduction also occurs in the Y-Z plane. Put another way, thetrapezoidal pattern at least partially defines a plurality of pores 314,314′, each of the plurality of pores 314, 314′ including a poredimension 318 that decreases in size along the second predetermineddirection 316.

Focusing on FIG. 3, the plurality of layers 306, 306′ etc. of solidifiedmaterial includes a first layer 306 with a first undulating strip 308 ofsolidified material extending in the first predetermined direction 310and a second layer 308′ with a second undulating strip 308′ ofsolidified material extending in a second predetermined direction 316.The undulations of any strip of solid material for any embodimentdescribed herein may have any suitable shape including zig-zag, square(or rectangular), trapezoidal, sinusoidal, polynomial, etc.

The first layer 306 is in contact with the second layer 306′ (that is tosay the legs of one layer may contact the layers of the other layer) andthe first predetermined direction 310 is not parallel with the secondpredetermined direction 316. This arrangement helps to form the pores314, 314′. The first predetermined direction 310 may be perpendicular tothe second predetermined direction 316. As shown in FIG. 3, the firstundulating strip 308 of solidified material is arranged in a trapezoidalpattern and the second undulating strip 308′ of solidified material isarranged in a square pattern (legs 312′ are parallel to each other).Another shape such as trapezoidal could also be used for strip 308′. Anyof these shapes may be varied as needed or desired in other embodiments.

A filter medium 400 according to an embodiment of the present disclosurewill now be described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 5 that may be usedas a replacement part. It should also be noted that various embodimentsof a filter medium as described herein may be reused by backflushingcaptured debris or other contaminants from the filter medium. The filtermedium 400 may comprise a plurality of layers 402, 402′, etc. ofsolidified material including a first layer 402 with a first undulatingstrip 404 of solidified material extending in a first predetermineddirection 406, and a second layer 402′ with a second undulating strip404′ of solidified material extending in a second predetermineddirection 408. The first layer 402 is in contact with the second layer402′ and the first predetermined direction 406 is not parallel with thesecond predetermined direction 408, forming a plurality of pores 410,410′ therebetween.

In particular embodiments, the first predetermined direction 406 isperpendicular to the second predetermined direction 408 but notnecessarily so. The first undulating strip 404 of solidified materialhas a trapezoidal pattern and the second undulating strip 404′ ofsolidified material has a square pattern. Other shapes are possible.

As alluded to earlier herein, the trapezoidal pattern at least partiallydefines a plurality of pores 410, 410′, each including a pore dimension412 that decreases in size along the second predetermined direction 408.

In FIG. 3, the filter medium 400 includes a rectangular cubicconfiguration. Other shapes such as annular are possible.

In FIG. 5, the filter medium 400 defines a third predetermined direction414 and the pore dimension 412 decreases in size along the thirdpredetermined direction 414. By way of an example, the firstpredetermined direction may by the X direction, the second direction maybe the Y direction, and the third direction may be the Z direction.

Looking at FIGS. 7 thru 12, another embodiment of a filter medium 500that may be provided as a replacement part can be described as follows.The filter medium 500 may comprise a plurality of layers 502, 502′,etc., each including an undulating strip 504, 504′ etc. of solidifiedmaterial. The filter medium 500 may include an annular shape defining anouter annular region 506 and an inner annular region 508. The pluralityof layers 502, 502′, etc. contact each other define a plurality of pores510 therebetween.

The filter medium 500 may further comprise a cap portion 512 and abottom portion 514 with the attributes and options described earlierherein. The cap portion 512 may include a first plurality of layers 516,516′, etc. of solidified material including a first layer 516 with afirst undulating strip 518 of solidified material extending in the firstpredetermined direction 520 and a second layer 516′ with a secondundulating strip 518′ of solidified material extending in a secondpredetermined direction 522. The first layer 516 is in contact with thesecond layer 516′ and the first predetermined direction 520 is notparallel with the second predetermined direction 522.

The bottom portion 514 includes a second plurality of layers 524, 524′,etc. of solidified material including a third layer 524 with a thirdundulating strip 526 of solidified material extending in the thirdpredetermined direction 528 and a fourth layer 524′ with a fourthundulating strip 526′ of solidified material extending in a fourthpredetermined direction 530. The third layer 524 is in contact with thefourth layer 524′ and the third predetermined direction 528 is notparallel with the fourth predetermined direction 530.

Again, as alluded to earlier herein, the undulations of the cap portion512 and the undulations of the bottom portion 514 are out of phase witheach other. As alluded to earlier herein, the “out of phase” undulationsmay provide an opportunity to have different porosity and filtering indifferent directions and sections of the media.

Any of the dimensions or configurations discussed herein for anyembodiment of a filter medium or filter or associated features may bevaried as needed or desired. Also, the filter medium or filter may bemade from any suitable material that has the desired structural strengthand that is chemically compatible with the fluid to be filtered. Forexample, various plastics may be used including, but not limited to PLA,co-polyesters, ABS, PE, Nylon, PU, etc.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

In practice, a filter medium, or a filter according to any embodimentdescribed herein may be sold, bought, manufactured or otherwise obtainedin an OEM or after-market context.

With reference to FIGS. 15 and 16, the disclosed filter mediums andfilters may be manufactured using conventional techniques such as, forexample, casting or molding. Alternatively, the disclosed filter mediumsand filters may be manufactured using other techniques generallyreferred to as additive manufacturing or additive fabrication.

Known additive manufacturing/fabrication processes include techniquessuch as, for example, 3D printing. 3D printing is a process whereinmaterial may be deposited in successive layers under the control of acomputer. The computer controls additive fabrication equipment todeposit the successive layers according to a three-dimensional model(e.g. a digital file such as an AMF or STL file) that is configured tobe converted into a plurality of slices, for example substantiallytwo-dimensional slices, that each define a cross-sectional layer of thefilter or filter medium in order to manufacture, or fabricate, thefilter or filter medium. In one case, the disclosed filter or filtermedium would be an original component and the 3D printing process wouldbe utilized to manufacture the filter or filter medium. In other cases,the 3D process could be used to replicate an existing filter or filtermedium and the replicated filter or filter medium could be sold asaftermarket parts. These replicated aftermarket filters or filtermediums could be either exact copies of the original filter or filtermediums or pseudo copies differing in only non-critical aspects.

With reference to FIG. 15, the three-dimensional model 1001 used torepresent a filter 100, 200, 300 or a filter medium 400, 500 accordingto any embodiment disclosed herein may be on a computer-readable storagemedium 1002 such as, for example, magnetic storage including floppydisk, hard disk, or magnetic tape; semiconductor storage such as solidstate disk (SSD) or flash memory; optical disc storage; magneto-opticaldisc storage; or any other type of physical memory or non-transitorymedium on which information or data readable by at least one processormay be stored. This storage medium may be used in connection withcommercially available 3D printers 1006 to manufacture, or fabricate,the filter 100, 200, 300 or the filter medium 400, 500. Alternatively,the three-dimensional model may be transmitted electronically to the 3Dprinter 1006 in a streaming fashion without being permanently stored atthe location of the 3D printer 1006. In either case, thethree-dimensional model constitutes a digital representation of thefilter 100, 200, 300 or the filter medium 400, 500 suitable for use inmanufacturing the filter 100, 200, 300 or the filter medium 400, 500.

The three-dimensional model may be formed in a number of known ways. Ingeneral, the three-dimensional model is created by inputting data 1003representing the filter 100, 200, 300 or the filter medium 400, 500 to acomputer or a processor 1004 such as a cloud-based software operatingsystem. The data may then be used as a three-dimensional modelrepresenting the physical the filter 100, 200, 300 or filter medium 400,500. The three-dimensional model is intended to be suitable for thepurposes of manufacturing the filter 100, 200, 300 or filter medium 400,500. In an exemplary embodiment, the three-dimensional model is suitablefor the purpose of manufacturing the filter 100, 200, 300 or filtermedium 400, 500 by an additive manufacturing technique.

In one embodiment depicted in FIG. 15, the inputting of data may beachieved with a 3D scanner 1005. The method may involve contacting thefilter 100, 200, 300 or the filter medium 400, 500 via a contacting anddata receiving device and receiving data from the contacting in order togenerate the three-dimensional model. For example, 3D scanner 1005 maybe a contact-type scanner. The scanned data may be imported into a 3Dmodeling software program to prepare a digital data set. In oneembodiment, the contacting may occur via direct physical contact using acoordinate measuring machine that measures the physical structure of thefilter 100, 200, 300 or filter medium 400, 500 by contacting a probewith the surfaces of the filter 100, 200, 300 or the filter medium 400,500 in order to generate a three-dimensional model.

In other embodiments, the 3D scanner 1005 may be a non-contact typescanner and the method may include directing projected energy (e.g.light or ultrasonic) onto the filter 100, 200, 300 or the filter medium400, 500 to be replicated and receiving the reflected energy. From thisreflected energy, a computer would generate a computer-readablethree-dimensional model for use in manufacturing the filter 100, 200,300 or the filter medium 400, 500. In various embodiments, multiple 2Dimages can be used to create a three-dimensional model. For example, 2Dslices of a 3D object can be combined to create the three-dimensionalmodel. In lieu of a 3D scanner, the inputting of data may be done usingcomputer-aided design (CAD) software. In this case, thethree-dimensional model may be formed by generating a virtual 3D modelof the disclosed filter 100, 200, 300 or the filter medium 400, 500using the CAD software. A three-dimensional model would be generatedfrom the CAD virtual 3D model in order to manufacture the filter 100,200, 300 or the filter medium 400, 500.

The additive manufacturing process utilized to create the disclosed thefilter 100, 200, 300 or the filter medium 400, 500 may involve materialssuch as described earlier herein. In some embodiments, additionalprocesses may be performed to create a finished product. Such additionalprocesses may include, for example, one or more of cleaning, hardening,heat treatment, material removal, and polishing such as when metalmaterials are employed. Other processes necessary to complete a finishedproduct may be performed in addition to or in lieu of these identifiedprocesses.

Focusing on FIG. 16, the method 600 for manufacturing a filter or filtermedium according to any embodiment disclosed herein may compriseproviding a computer-readable three-dimensional model of the filter orthe filter medium, the three-dimensional model being configured to beconverted into a plurality of slices that each define a cross-sectionallayer of the filter or filter medium (block 602); and successivelyforming each layer of the filter or filter medium by additivemanufacturing (block 604). Successively forming each layer of the filteror filter medium by additive manufacturing may include building aplurality of layers, wherein at least one of the plurality of layersincludes a first undulating strip of material extending in a firstpredetermined direction (block 606).

Also, the method may comprise forming a second one of the plurality oflayers including a second undulating strip of material extending in asecond predetermined direction that is different than the firstpredetermined direction (block 608). Furthermore, the method maycomprise varying at least one of the following variables to create thedesired pore minimum dimension: the speed and/or path of the print head,the flow rate of the plastic, the type of plastic, rate of cooling ofthe plastic, and the pattern or the configuration of the undulatingmaterial to create layer deformation (block 610). The filter or filtermedium may be built from the bottom toward the top.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that variousmodifications and variations can be made to the embodiments of theapparatus and methods of assembly as discussed herein without departingfrom the scope or spirit of the invention(s). Other embodiments of thisdisclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the art fromconsideration of the specification and practice of the variousembodiments disclosed herein. For example, some of the equipment may beconstructed and function differently than what has been described hereinand certain steps of any method may be omitted, performed in an orderthat is different than what has been specifically mentioned or in somecases performed simultaneously or in sub-steps. Furthermore, variationsor modifications to certain aspects or features of various embodimentsmay be made to create further embodiments and features and aspects ofvarious embodiments may be added to or substituted for other features oraspects of other embodiments in order to provide still furtherembodiments.

Accordingly, it is intended that the specification and examples beconsidered as exemplary only, with a true scope and spirit of theinvention(s) being indicated by the following claims and theirequivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A filter medium comprising: a plurality of layersof solidified material including a first layer with a first undulatingstrip of solidified material extending in a first predetermineddirection in a first plane parallel to the first predetermineddirection; and a second layer with a second undulating strip ofsolidified material extending in a second predetermined direction in asecond plane parallel to the second predetermined direction; wherein thefirst layer is in contact with the second layer and the firstpredetermined direction is not parallel with the second predetermineddirection, forming a plurality of pores therebetween, the firstpredetermined direction is perpendicular to the second predetermineddirection, and the first undulating strip of solidified material has atrapezoidal pattern including two non-parallel legs and the secondundulating strip of solidified material has a square pattern includingtwo parallel legs.
 2. The filter medium of claim 1 wherein thetrapezoidal pattern at least partially defines a plurality of pores eachincluding a pore dimension that decreases in size along the secondpredetermined direction.
 3. The filter medium of claim 1 wherein thefilter medium includes a rectangular cubic configuration.
 4. The filtermedium of claim 2 wherein the filter medium defines a thirdpredetermined direction and the pore dimension decreases in size alongthe third predetermined direction.
 5. A filter comprising: a bodyincluding an outer wall defining a hollow interior; an inlet in fluidcommunication with the hollow interior, an outlet in fluid communicationwith the hollow interior; and a first filter medium disposed in thehollow interior comprising a plurality of layers, wherein each layerincludes an undulating strip of solidified material, forming a pluralityof pores between each of the plurality of layers, and a least one of theplurality of layers includes an undulating strip of solidified materialthat has a trapezoidal pattern including two oblique legs, and anotherone of the plurality of layers includes a rectangular pattern includingtwo parallel legs that contact the two oblique legs of the trapezoidalpattern; wherein the hollow interior includes a rectangular cubicchamber in fluid communication with the inlet and the outlet and thefirst filter medium is disposed in the rectangular cubic chamber betweenthe inlet and the outlet, and configured such that fluid passes throughthe inlet, then through the first filter medium, and then through theoutlet, the body includes a bottom wall and a sidewall, and the inletextends through the bottom wall and the outlet extends through thesidewall.
 6. The filter of claim 5 wherein the body defines a pluralityof parallel support ribs disposed in the outlet.
 7. The filter of claim5 wherein the body further defines a plurality of auxiliary voids thatare not in fluid communication with the rectangular cubic chamber. 8.The filter of claim 7 wherein the body includes support structuredisposed in the plurality of auxiliary voids.
 9. The filter of claim 5wherein the body is seamless and the first filter medium defines aplurality of pores that define a minimum dimension that is between 50 μmto 200 μm.
 10. The filter of claim 9 wherein the minimum dimension ofthe plurality of pores ranges from 70 μm to 170 μm.
 11. The filter ofclaim 5 further comprising a second filter medium disposed immediatelyadjacent the first filter medium and the outlet, wherein first filtermedium defines a plurality of pores having a first minimum dimension,the second filter medium defines a plurality of pores having a secondminimum dimension, and the first minimum dimension is greater than thesecond minimum dimension.
 12. The filter of claim 11 wherein the firstfilter medium and the second filter medium are separate components. 13.The filter of claim 12 wherein the body of the filter is separate fromthe first filter medium and the second filter medium.